15. The Government of India has recently decided to raise the price of oil products like diesel, petrol and cooking gas. However, some taxes on these products were reduced or scrapped altogether. Which of the following taxes was/were reduced or scrapped?

(A) Customs Duty (B) VAT (C) Excise Duty

a) Only (A) b) Only (A) and (B) c) Only (A) and (C)

d) Only (B) and (C) e) All the above

16. Government has recently decided to increase its total health expenditure to 2.5 per cent of the GDP by the end of the 12th Five Year Plan. What is the current expenditure?

(A) Turkmenistan will get paid for gas delivered at Afghanistan border.

(B) India and Pakistan will get an equal share of the gas.

(C) The pipeline will enter India at Firozepur in Punjab

a) Only (A) b) Only (A) and (B) c) Only (B) and (C)

d) Only (A) and (C) e) All the above

19. A bank which acts as a banker to other banker is called

a) Saving Bank b) Commercial Bank c) Investment Bank

d) Development Bank e) Central Bank

20. Banks give contracts to third parties in order to manage support services like

a) Helpdesk support b) Credit card processing c) Call support service

d) All of the above e) None of these

21. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has issued a notification making it mandatory for all demand drafts of and above to be account payee only

a) Rs. 10,000 b) Rs. 20,000 c) Rs. 30,000

d) Rs. 40,000 e) Rs. 50,000

22. Which of the following is not a programme to develop infrastructure in India?

a) National Highway Development Programme

b) Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission

c) Rajiv Awas Yojana

d) Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act

e) Accelerated Power Development and Reform Programme

23. Which of the following is/are considered as a renewable source of energy?

(A) Wind Energy (B) Solar energy (C) Nuclear energy

a) Only (A) b) Only (B) c) Only (C)

d) Only (A) and (B) e) All (A), (B) and (C)

24. My Unforgettable Memories is a recently released autobiography of which of the following politicians of India?

a) Sheila Dixit b) Mayawati c) J Jayalalithaa

d) Mamata Banerjee e) None of these

25. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has allowed Qualified Foreign Investors (QFIs) to directly invest in equities of listed Indian companies. Which of the following statements is/are correct in this regard?

(B) An individual QFI cannot buy more than 1% of the paid-up capital of an Indian company

(C) QFI investment in an Indian company cannot exceed 10% of its paid up capital

a) Only (A) b) Only (A) and (B) c) Only (B)

d) Only (A) and (C) e) All (A), (B) and (C)

26. Who among the following is the inventor of the World Wide Web, ie Internet?

a) Berners-Lee b) Mark Zuckerburg c) Konrad Zuse

d) Larry Page e) Jawed Karim

27. Which of the following organisation is largely funding the National Dairy Plan (NDP) - Phase I, which was inaugurated by the Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar in Anand, Gujarat on April 19, 2012?

a) International Development Association b) Asian Development Bank

c) IBRD d) UNDP e) Universal Donor Group

28. The much developed Russian aircraft carrier Gorshkov will be ready for commissioning in India by December 2012, This navy ship will be rechristened in India as

a) INS Viraat b) INS Vikrant c) INS Talwar

d) INS Vikramaditya e) INS Shalki

29. In which state did the Maoists abduct an MLA named Jhina Hikaka for trying him in their kangaroo court named ‘Praja Court’ recently?

a) Jharkhand b) Chhattisgarh c) Bihar d) Odisha

e) Madhya Pradesh

30. Which of the following states has launched the year long platinum jubilee celebration of its legislative assembly this year, which has recently been kick started by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh?

a) Uttar Pradesh b) Madhya Pradesh c) Gujarat

d) Assam e) Odisha

31. The government is mulling over giving food grain to the workers of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) as part of their wages. This is being protested by many quarters. The decision has to be approved by the apex body for monitoring the implementation of NREGS. What is the name of this body?

a) Rural Development Ministry b) NABARD c) CAPART

d) Central Employment Guarantee Council e) National Advisory Council

32. The Government of India has recently launched a ‘Youth to the Edge’ pilot scheme in the north - eastern region for which of the following purposes?

a) To encourage the youth of the North-East to actively participate in the development process

b) To impart professional soft skills to the youth of the North-East

c) To introduce youth from the rest of India to the North - Eastern culture

d) To provide jobs to the members of the insurgent groups in the North - East

e) None of these

33. In order to stop malpractices and ensure transparency in elections to cooperative societies, which of the following state governments has set up a separate poll panel?

a) Bihar b) Gujarat c) West Bengal d) Kerala

e) Delhi

34. Which of the following countries of the world is making news these days for a spate of teenage suicides, which is three times the world average?

a) Spain b) Russia c) Greece d) Pakistan e) Egypt

35. With which country is India building the Jaynagar-Baridibas rail link, the work on which has been expedited?

a) Nepal b) Bangladesh c) Pakistan d) Bhutan e) Myanmar

36. Which of the following drinks is to be declared a National Drink in 2013 in honour of the plantation worker and sepoy mutiny leader Maniram Dewan on his 212th birth anniversary?

a) Coffee b) Tea c) Lassi d) Coconut Milk

e) Jal Jeera

37. The Gas Authority of India Ltd., (GAIL) is in talks with which of the following gas majors of the world to form a joint venture company to develop pipeline infrastructure and supply gas to the industrial hub and clusters coming up as a part of the Delhi - Mumbai Industrial Corridor?

a) Royal Dutch b) Exxon Mobil c) Chevron

d) Tokyo Gas e) Petro China

38. The Zila Parishad of which of the following districts of India has been chosen for National Panchayati Raj Award for implementing all central government schemes?

a) Sawai Madhopur b) Kurukshetra c) Saurashtra

d) Mandsor e) Rai Bareilly

39. In which of the following Indian states has the state government waived five per cent VAT on textiles and instead imposed a one per cent composite tax?

a) Kerala b) West Bengal c) Andhra Pradesh

d) Odisha e) Gujarat

40. As per the International Monetary Fund (IMF), what is the projected economic growth rate of India’s GDP for 2012?

a) 6.6% b) 6% c) 6.5% d) 6.9% e) 6.8%

41. In which of the following Indian states has the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) established India’s first Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) system, substituting the existing cash payment method?

a) Maharashtra b) Rajasthan c) Delhi d) Punjab

e) Haryana

42. Which of the following telecom companies has recently issued notice to the Indian government under Bilateral Investment Treaty over tax issues between India and the Netherlands?

a) Airtel b) Vodafone c) Idea d) Aircel

e) Reliance

43. Which of the following is the slogan of London Olympics 2012 which was recently revealed by the London organizers at an even in Kew Gardens?

a) Faster, Higher, Stronger b) Inspire a generation

c) With glowing hearts d) Share the spirit

e) Coexistence with the nature

44. Recently, a Gandhian Giriraj Kishore has returned his Padma Shri to the government to protest the auction of Gandhi’s items. What is the profession of Giriraj Kishore?

a) Social Activist b) Politician c) Writer d) Historian

e) Anti-corruption activist

45. April 22 is celebrated every year as which of the following days?

a) World Earth Day b) World Health Day c) National Stress Awareness Day

d) World Green Day e) Dental Health Day

46. Woman activist Maya Suwalka, who has bagged the prestigious Ambedkar Women’s Welfare Award for her campaign for women empowerment, child rights, handicrafts promotion and watershed development during the past decade, belongs to which of the following states?

a) Rajasthan b) Haryana c) Punjab d) Odisha

e) Bihar

47. Which of the following state chief ministers has decided to launch state-owned newspaper and TV channel to highlight the good work done by the government?

a) Uttar Pradesh b) West Bengal c) Bihar d) Jharkhand

e) Madhya Pradesh

48. To which of the following television channels has the government served a notice to refrain from screening the film The Dirty Picture during the day time?

a) Star Plus b) Zee cinema c) Colors d) Sony

e) Set Max

49. The central government will soon take up a study on 100 - odd dams that will soon come up in which of the following states?

a) Arunachal Pradesh b) Assam c) West Bengal d) Kerala

e) Andhra Pradesh

50. The Lok Sabha approved the Transplantation of Human Organs (Amendment) Bill, 2011. The bill increases punishment from five to ten years of imprisonment and the fine from Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 20,000. Which of the following statements is true regarding the bill?

a) The bill involves severe punishment for those involved in organ trade.

b) The bill does not allow uncles and aunts and grandparents to donate their organs.

c) The bill allows illegal and commercial dealings of the organs

d) The amended bill does not allow swapping of vital organs between willing but incompatible legal donors